Sailor recalls invasion, treating wounded

Marines pass a memorial that hangs on a wall in a stairwell inside the 1st Battalion 8th Marines Battalion Headquarters that honors those killed in action during the Iraq War. The 10-year anniversary of the Iraq invasion is today.

Chuck Beckley

By THOMAS BRENNAN - Daily News Staff

Published: Monday, March 18, 2013 at 06:03 PM.

Ten years later Pietro Christofoli hasn’t forgotten.

He still remembers like it was yesterday.

He still honors the men lost.

Today marks the 10-year anniversary of the invasion of Iraq and the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The nearly nine-year war ended on Dec. 18, 2011 and cost the lives of nearly 4,500 service members and left more than 32,000 troops wounded.

For those who survived, the memories will last a lifetime.

Christofoli’s call to war came before his Christmas leave in 2002.

“My (superior) told me to enjoy Christmas because when I came back I’d more than likely be heading to Iraq,” he said. “It was weird saying goodbye to my folks, but it’s a job we signed up for. They were more upset than I was.”

Today marks the 10-year anniversary of the invasion of Iraq and the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The nearly nine-year war ended on Dec. 18, 2011 and cost the lives of nearly 4,500 service members and left more than 32,000 troops wounded.

For those who survived, the memories will last a lifetime.

Christofoli’s call to war came before his Christmas leave in 2002.

“My (superior) told me to enjoy Christmas because when I came back I’d more than likely be heading to Iraq,” he said. “It was weird saying goodbye to my folks, but it’s a job we signed up for. They were more upset than I was.”

Before he knew it, he was on a “pretty interesting and unpleasant flight” across the Atlantic in a C-17 cargo plane.

“I expected dirt — a lot of dirt,” said Christofoli, 33 of Lexington, S.C., on what he thought Iraq would be like. “As far as militarily, I didn’t expect the enemy to be that hard. They put the fear of chemical warfare out there.

“Being a corpsman I expected a lot of my guys to get hurt. Thankfully they didn’t.”

What he didn’t expect was the people to be so warm or their lives to be so different.

“I didn’t think the people were going to be as happy to see us as they were. They were genuinely happy to see us,” said Christofoli who served with 2nd Tanks during the invasion. “We passed this little village and everyone lined up on the road and waved at us as they smiled.

“I wasn’t expecting piles of trash sitting besides their houses doubling as a playground for their kids. It was a bit of a shock.”

When he joined the Navy in 1999, Christofoli didn’t anticipate going to war, much less what it meant.

When they first got to the Middle East, he said, it was a waiting game. In March 2003, it was time to cross the border.

“We went in through Kuwait — tanks went first,” he said. “Then we came in and come to find out, we were in there fighting for four to five hours before anyone else even crossed the border. As soon as we crossed over the fighting started — not that long at all and we were under fire.”

The fighting eventually ended and U.S. forces were able to push further into Iraq.

“Before I left it wasn’t real yet,” he said. “I was excited. I thought to myself, ‘let’s give it a whirl.’ But when I got there war wasn’t what I expected. You grow up watching the old war movies and think it’s going to be constant blood and guts. Honestly it wasn’t that bad. I think things got a lot worse after the initial invasion.”

He remembers his first casualty and the numbness he felt under fire.

“I was always nervous that when it came time to do my job I would freeze up.” he said. “I didn’t. I never had time to feel afraid. When I got called to treat someone I was more into taking care of them than I was about what was going on around me.”

The hardest part for Christofoli was the lack of communication with the real world, he said.

“When you come back it seems like the real world kept going and you were stuck on pause. You had to put your life in fast forward in order to catch up,” he said.

“I seemed a little out of it when I came home.”

Ten years later, Christofoli finally feels like he has caught up with the real world. Currently, he is going to school through the Medical Enlisted Commissioning Program to become a nurse. Graduating in December, “I’ll get commissioned and go wherever the Navy sends me.”

But for the remainder of his career, war has left its mark.

“I think I have come back more hyper-vigilant and I’m more nervous in crowds,” he said. “If I’m in a car with someone and they are driving I get real jumpy. My wife says I have two emotions: angry and happy.”

The war and the loss of comrades have taught him to cherish life.

“I learned to appreciate warm water and showers,” he said. “I don’t take things for granted anymore. Finally, I learned that life is short so you need to enjoy it while you got it.”

Contact Daily News Military Reporter Thomas Brennan at 910-219-8453 or thomas.brennan@jdnews.com. Follow him on Twitter @thomasjbrennan.